The Montessori educational approach might be the surest route to joining the creative elite, which are so overrepresented by the school’s alumni that one might suspect a Montessori Mafia: Google’s founders Larry Page and Sergei Brin, Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, videogame pioneer Will Wright, and Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales, not to mention Julia Child and rapper Sean “P. Diddy” Combs.

Peter Sims will field questions from WSJ readers about the Montessori approach and the “Montessori Mafia” over at our fellow blog Ideas Market. The chat will be moderated by WSJ.com Life and Culture editor Allison Lichter today at 3 p.m. ET. Ask your questions now. Did any of you go to Montessori or send your kids to a Montessori school?

Comments (5 of 41)

I have two kids at the Oak Meadow Montessori in the Boston suburb of Littleton. We put them in there as a superior sort of a pre-K school but then realized that the kids were thriving and so decided to keep them here into their Lower Elementary (1-3 grades) and Upper Elementary (4-6) grades.

We are not affluent, have had to make other compromises on lifestyle and choices but are delighted with how rounded and independent our little ones are as they grow. They are learning to embrace imperfect guidelines as an opportunity to explore and define their own, they have learned to appreciate the good in others even as they thrive for excellence themselves, they have learned to question and understand rationale of things before diving in to doing things and they continue to thrive on embracing the method as much as the end outcome.

12:18 pm April 18, 2011

Juls wrote :

I love the premise of Montessori, "seed for learning" my child has flourished in Montessori. Knowledge of math, of the world (maps, capitals, rivers) are not at the same level with her public school friends.
What I like most is the order that Montessori teaches, while most people think that there is no order, there is plenty of it.

I believe education is a choice and this is what we've chosen for our children. We work hard and make plenty of adjustments to afford this education.

How do you explain to parents who think it's best to save for a good HS education or that HS is more important than the early education years?

What have you learned from writting your article about Montessori that impressed you?

From your interviews, what are employers looking for that relates closely to the Montessori methods?

Thank you.

12:44 am April 15, 2011

anonymouse wrote :

Houston, which Montessori did your kids attend? Did it involve a bear or a saint?

I'm a Montessori brat myself (from late 70s) and would prefer that, but despite my private school upbringing, I would not send my own kids there. Its just too expensive, and I believe it is really important to venture out of that bubble.
As for Montessori, I loved maps at that age and spent time learning the various capitols vs. learning how to pour juice (a good friend of mine loved that task in Montessori preschool). Some kids thrive in montessori, but others get lost. My sister and I learned to read really early (~3) because of Montessori. My sister still reads 2-3 books a week as a result and her vocabulary and knowledge is amazing (she had near perfect verbal SAT and GRE scores). I read less, but guarantee I read more than most I come in contact with. For the Juggle book selections (keep them coming!!!), I would recommend Jimmy Buffett's fiction for some light reading. I picked some up on the discount rack (where I shop most exclusively for books) and have found his fiction to be quite good.....it overshot my expectations with regards to plot and characterization. (you will not be reading about adventures in Margaritaville or a cheeseburger in paradise.) I would make a comparison to Pat Conroy, but with less detail and more action. (PC's Beach Music remains one of my favorite books of fiction)

5:19 pm April 14, 2011

zzzzzz wrote :

Tucker 12:05-- I don't think my kids' preschool was high-intensity, and that the kids were pushed hard into reading. My impression was that they were given the opportunity to learn at their own rate, and there was a broad spectrum of reading abilities among the kids.

5:10 pm April 14, 2011

zzzzzz wrote :

Tucker 6:12-- Firstborn is now in 6th grade, and did not get bored in earlier grades, although he did enter Kindergarten further along academically than most of his peers.

One of the best results of my kids' Montessori preschool background is that neither the kids nor their parents had to deal with any stress resulting from lagging behind their peers academically, which helped make school a fun experience. We know of kids/parents at the current school who haven't had such a fun experience because the kids were struggling to keep up academically.

In a way the Montessori preschool was a good complement to his current school, which, consistent with its reputation, has a broader curriculum. Not having to spend a lot of time on math and reading has allowed him to explore his interest in writing, which is a strength of his current school.

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